Page 25 of Horror and Chill
I freeze.
The room doesn't.
The chat goes feral.
User259:WHAT THE FUCK
SnackPackSlut:WHO TF IS THAT
CrimsonMouth:MODS MODS MODS
GoreSlut420:IS THIS A BIT OR???
VelvetNoose:Oh my god is that HIM is that ACTUALLY HIM
My pulse hammers. I shift forward without meaning to, elbows pressing into my thighs as I stare at the name. The profile picture is nothing. A black circle. No post history. Joined today. No tip record.
But I know it’s him. The name tells me everything I need to know. I reach for the keyboard, type nothing, then pull my hands back. Let them wonder. Let him know I saw it.
I keep the mask on, but I lean closer to the mic. “I’m filming something new this weekend,” I murmur. “Someplace quiet. Out past where the road forgets to be a road. Where the only thing left breathing is the wind through broken rafters.”
User259:Uh what does that even mean
SnackPackSlut:Girl just say you're going to the woods again???
CrimsonMouth:This is why I have anxiety
VelvetNoose:No because she’s being POETICALLY UNHINGED
GraveyardDaddy:The road forgets to be a road???? Help
“Maybe you want to play again,” I say, low. “Maybe this time, I’ll makeyouscream louder than I did.”
CryptCummin:THIS IS NOT A BIT
User259:DO NOT DO THIS
CrimsonMouth:If he shows up again we all sue
CreepCreepCreep:SHE’S BAITING A KILLER
ThighHighPriestess:She’s my Roman Empire
I pause. Let the wave of panic roll past me. Then I speak again, soft, thoughtful, like I’m wondering aloud.
“Maybe he’s a killer.” Another beat. “But maybe that’s my kink.”
And then I log off.
10
Him
She’s baiting us.
Good. Let her. Let her try.
She’s calling to us.It’s not a taunt. It’s not vengeance. It’s a lure. The way her legs are spread beneath that oversized sweater. The way her voice drips sweet and slow, like molasses on a blade. She isn’t scared.
